Having won the last leg of the race, Brent & Sean are the first to depart at 12:41am. They're on their way to Kolkata, India and as the winners of the last leg they get to choose another team to join them in Air Canada International Business Class for the trip. That's going to be a lot more comfortable than steerage. All teams also get $350US on their BMO Cash card. Hopefully the upgrade will give the boys enough of a lead once they arrive in India.
Gino & Jesse are close behind at 12:49am and I'm sure they'll be playing up to the Designers for that upgrade. Dujean & Leilani are way behind at 3:06am but we all know everyone will be on the same flight. Leilani really wants to sweet talk Brent & Sean for the upgrade but she could be too late. Pretty sure it's not going to Brian & Cynthia though, who leave at 3:10am. Somehow I think this leg will either make or break the Winnipegers because neither one of them seems to keep their cool under pressure, especially Brian.
Nick & Matt are out at 3:30am and Simi & Ope bring up the rear, departing at 4:43am. If I were the Designers I'd seriously consider giving that upgrade to the father/daughter team. Teams are now in their way from Saskatoon to Vancouver, where Brent & Sean will need to make their decision, . . . and decide they do. They feel that the one team that helped them the most was Dujean & Leilani and most of the other teams seem okay with that, except for Brian & Cynthia who look ticked off. Guess it pays to be nice and supportive of other teams rather than grumpy and dismissive.
Business Class looks really comfortable. Sean reveals that they picked Dujean & Leilani because of their support on the equestrian task. That's as good a reason as any. Everyone is now on their way from Vancouver, via Tokyo, to Kolkata, India, the second largest city in the country. Once teams arrive in Kolkata they need to make their way to the Mallick Ghat Flower Market to receive a blessing and their next clue.
It's a mad rush out of the airport and despite being in business class it's not much of a lead as all teams hit the street running for cabs. Once in the cabs everyone notices how chaotic the streets are, but what I notice is just how colourful everything is. Brent & Sean managed to grab the right cab as they were first to the flower market and first to receive their blessing and the next clue.
Stop And Smell The Flowers, has teams locating one of six designated flower stalls where they'll need to recreate a traditional flower garland using a needle, thread, and fresh flowers. Once they've recreated the garland they'll get their next clue and this should be an easy challenge for the Designers. It doesn't surprise me that Sean knows all the flowers by name. Maybe they're studying to be floral designers.
All the other teams arrived at almost the same time so this should add to the chaos. Gino & Jesse are fairly detail oriented so they should also be able to race through this task. Brian & Cynthia? Not so much.
Brent & Sean were done in no time and gave the garland to the stall owner for his wife as they tore open their next clue. Teams must now find their way on foot to the Armenian Ferry Ghat and then take the ferry downriver to the dock at Bagbazar Ghat to find their next clue.
While the boys are off and running Brian & Cynthia have their "spidey-senses" going off all around them due to all the bumping and jostling in their personal space. These two seem to be suspicious of everybody and that can't be good. The Wrestlers in the other hand are used to crowds and just tune them out. Gino & Jesse are focused on making their mother proud with their garland, as Leilani assumes her garland is awesome. It's not, but I must admit that these two have brought a lot less drama to the race than I thought they would.
As Dujean & Leilani start over, similar & ope hand theirs in for a check . . . and receive the next clue. They're now off in second place to catch up to Brent & Sean at the ferry. The Wrestlers have also finished their garland and Jesse looks a tad confused at how they're falling behind, but they stay focused and finish to get the clue.
At the ferry, Brent & Sean are hoping it gets going before any other teams arrive but Simi & Ope have arrived, followed by Nick & Matt. As Gino & Jesse are racing down the dock the ferry is being untied . . . and they just made it. The ferry is on its way, leaving Dujean & Leilani and Brian & Cynthia back at the flower market where they finalize their garlands, get their clues and race off to the find the next ferry.
The first four teams arrive at Bagbazar Ghat to find the clue for this leg's Roadblock; Who Wants To Meet Their Idol? In this Roadblock teams must find Kumartuli Pally, a potters colony with over 450 pottery shops, then locate a specific shop with statues of the goddess of wealth and beauty, Lakshmi. Six of these idols have one unique feature matching a supplied photo in the clue and the team member who chooses the task will need to find that matching idol. This looks like a job for me as I'm more detail oriented than Wayne. Find the goddess, get the clue.
Nick, Gino, Simi and Brent all decide to do it. As they leave the dock Gino & Jesse find a guy who will walk them straight to the colony, but they're a little perturbed that Simi & Ope are following along. Brent & Sean wander off in a different direction entirely and so do Nick & Matt, both of which are wrong.
After quickly finding the shop Gino noticed immediately the difference in his photo and was even quicker in finding its matching idol. Gino & Jesse are the first to get the next clue and have reclaimed first place, . . . for now. They must now make their way by taxi to Swami Vivekananda House & Cultural Centre to find their next clue. Swami Vivekananda made a trip to Vancouver and is credited with bringing the art of yoga to the western world so we know there's about to be a yoga task coming up.
With Gino out of the way, Simi is able to locate her matching idol fairly quickly and she and her father are on the boys trail. As Gino & Jesse are having trouble trying to find a taxi driver who knows where to go, Simi & Ope luck out on their first choice and move into first place.
Back at the idol shop, Nick & Matt have arrived and Nick is sure his first idol is a match, but he's wrong. With a little more focus he finally realizes the difference he's looking for and he and Matt are off even before Brent & Sean have found the shop. As the Wrestlers race away from the shop the Designers race in. Knowing they've moved out of the lead has added a bit more pressure and Brent looks like he's just guessing as he tries to find a match. Focus, boy, focus.
Meanwhile, Gino & Jesse finally find a cab who says he knows where to go, as do Nick & Matt. No worries though as they're all ahead of the final two teams who have just arrived at Bagbazar Ghat and are in search of the idol shop. As the final two leave the dock, Simi & Ope have found the statue of Swami Vivekananda and this leg's Detour; Tuck or Roll.
In Tuck, teams will have to locate a residence and then learn a series of six different couple's yoga poses and then perform them in order for the guru to get their next clue. This does not look like the type of Detour Wayne and I would choose, especially when you consider our height difference. There's no way we'd line up so I guess we'd head for the other Detour.
In Roll, teams will need to find the university institute hall and load up a rickshaw to make two deliveries to local merchants, while navigating the narrow streets. The first delivery is empty bottles to a soda shop, then return to reload their rickshaw with bundles of cloth for a decorating store. Yep, this is the task for Gord & Wayne.
Simi & Ope decide to do Roll, despite Simi being concern about the busy streets and the heat. Speaking of which, the heat is on for Brent & Sean as Brent continues to randomly guess as Brian & Cynthia and Dujean & Leilani arrive at the idol shop. It took no time at all for Leilani to spot her matching idol and she and Dujean pull into fourth place. It's now down to Brent or Brian to determine who falls behind.
Despite finding the idol Dujean & Leilani can't find a taxi and are quickly losing their lead on the last two teams. Brian is sure that all the idols are the same, hence the episode title, but when he tells the shopkeeper his theory she tells him he's wrong. Brian seems to have missed the concept of the challenge which is the only saving grace Brent is going to get here.
Gino & Jesse arrive at Swami Vivekananda's statue and ask their driver to wait as they race to get the clue ahead of the wrestlers who just arrived, but when they go back for their cab, it's gone. Both Gino & Jesse and Nick & Matt have chosen Roll. As Nick points out, grunt work is their thing.
Back at the idols I can't believe Brian found a match before Brent did. Things are not looking good for the Designers as Brian & Cynthia leave them in the Kolkata dust. Having fallen into last place Brent finally focuses on the task at hand and finds the matching idol. Time for the Sweeney brothers to play catch up.
Dujean & Leilani finally find a cab while Brian & Cynthia struggle to do the same. In the meantime, Simi & Ope have found the university institute only to find themselves at the back entrance and now having to work their way around to the front. Nick & Matt however found the front and have finally moved into first place. Let's hope they can keep it. As the Wrestlers begin loading their chosen rickshaw, Gino & Jesse have arrived and grab another one just as Simi & Ope find the entryway.
Nick & Matt decide to hold some bags of bottles as they finish loading up and head out to make their first delivery, an attempt that Gino & Jesse decide to copy as they squeeze past Simi & Ope still loading up. Gino & Jesse decide to follow Nick & Matt and I think it's funny how they have no problem following someone else but don't like when they're the ones being followed.
Somehow, Brent & Sean managed to jump ahead to the Detour clue box. As they opened their clue Dujean & Leilani arrived and there was no sign of Brian & Cynthia. As Simi pulls the rickshaw, Ope follows behind shouting guidance and Brian & Cynthia finally find the Swami and choose Roll.
Dujean & Leilani and Brent & Sean are the only two teams who chose Tuck and Brent is sure there's no way he can do any of those poses. Dujean doesn't look too sure either, but as dancers they're used to having to watch and copy other performers so this may be a lot easier for them. While they contemplate their moves, Nick & Matt make their first delivery just ahead of Gino & Jesse. Bottles are spilling all over the place as Gino & Jesse pull ahead of the Wrestlers and race back for the bundles of cloth.
Simi & Ope are a lot more careful with their bottle delivery than the first two teams, but that's also slowing them down. As they unload, the other two are back and already reloading. As soon as Jesse says "no problem" to finishing the second delivery you just know there's going to be a problem. They get directions and head out as Nick & Matt return for their load, unfortunately their first set of directions was wrong and when they stop again for directions these ones seem even worse.
Sean is having some serious trouble lifting his brother into one of the poses and I'm surprised neither has mentioned switching yet. There'll be no switching for Simi & Ope who are now loading up their bundles and ready for their second delivery. As they pull out, Brian & Cynthia arrive, complaining that they need ear plugs to cut down on the noise. As they move out, most of their bottles do the same, falling off the sides. Maybe they should raise the rickshaw roof.
Out on the street Gino & Jesse keep dropping their bundles and again I wonder why nobody us using the cover of the rickshaw to hold things in place. It's not rocket science, the Wrestlers figured it out. Which is probably why they were able to complete their second delivery ahead of Gino & Jesse.
Dujean & Leilani are ready to be judged and so far so good. That sixth pose looks really tough, but they did it on their first attempt and have received their next clue. They're on their way to the National Library on the grounds of the Bel Deere Estate to find Jon at the next Pit Stop. As the Dancers race off, the Wrestlers return their rickshaw and move unknowingly into second place as they also race for the National Library.
When Sean leaned too far back on that sixth pose Brent almost broke his neck as he somersaulted overtop. I gotta give them credit for sticking with it though, despite the tears. For a change its Brent who's the one breaking down. As they keep trying to nail that pose, Ope hauls the second load in an attempt to move ahead of Gino & Jesse who have started getting on each other's nerves. Heat will do that to people. Getting stuck in a traffic jam isn't helping Simi & Ope, but it did allow Gino & Jesse to unload first and move into third as Simi & Ope move into fourth.
Or not, because they've managed to find a cab before Gino & Jesse. While the boys try to hail a cab Brian & Cynthia are trying to locate their first delivery. Done. As Brian & Cynthia return for their epsecond load, Brent & Sean feel they're ready, having figured out what they were doing wrong on the last pose. Their first five poses looked really good but now it's time for the last one, . . . and it's good. The Designers think they're in last place but from the looks of the editing Gino & Jesse are still trying to get a cab.
As Dujean & Leilani catch up to Nick & Matt's cab, the Wrestlers turn off to the left and that could be the deciding factor in first or second place right there. It's a foot race to the mat and it looks like Nick & Matt got shafted by their driver as Dujean & Leilani are Team Number 1. They don't believe it and Jon has to keep repeating it to them. I can't believe it either. They also win a trip to London, England and free gas for the next year.
Unfortunately, Nick & Matt are Team Number 2. They're not happy, but they only need to be first once. Not something Brian & Cynthia are going to be this leg as they finish their deliveries and begin yelling at each other in their search for a cab. As they echo Gino & Jesse, Brent & Sean pass Simi & Ope as they near the National Library. As they race across the field it's Brent & Sean as Team Number 3, and Simi & Ope as Team Number 4. Lots of hugs as both teams realize they're still in it.
Out on the streets Cynthia appears to have found a cab before Gino & Jesse and as she and Brian load their bags this could be it for the brothers. Just like that Gino & Jesse find a cab and Brian & Cynthia hit a traffic jam. It looks like it's going to be close but I have a feeling that if it comes down to a foot race Gino & Jesse will pull ahead.
As Jon points into the distance Gino & Jesse are Team Number 5. Not their best leg but better than Brian & Cynthia who were the last team to arrive and have been eliminated. It's a good farewell for the two of them and they stayed fairly supportive of each other as they walked off into the Indian sunset.
Next week the teams are staying in India as they head to Delhi to transport live slippery fish and enjoy some spicy peppers. Mmm, yummy. A turban challenge could have teams in knots while the Wrestlers finally look like they'll get a challenge built just for them. Looking forward to it.
Speaking of looking forward to things, keep an eye out for Wayne's review of episode eight and our exit interview with Brian & Cynthia. We're back together for our video review at the Druid on Friday and we hope everyone enjoys our point of view. Until that time.